How much money can Shohei Ohtani’s make in his new contract? Possible salary and years

While we can delve into the numbers he’s produced on the field and the marketing revenue that he drives off of it, there’s simply no way to truly encapsulate the effect that the Japanese two-way sensation has had on the sport. With that said, we can try.

What’s Shohei Ohtani’s situation right now?

The World Series is now over and with that, it’s time to focus on more important things, like the future of Los Angeles Angels superstar, Shohei Ohtani. At 29 years old, Ohtani is as big an influence on the field as he is off it which is to say he is a global icon. While he recently underwent surgery on his elbow which will likely see him unable to pitch until 2025, the reality is that won’t stop him from landing the most lucrative contract in MLB history, with the general consensus being that the deal will exceed $500 million. When considering the idea that across his career he’s posted a 148 OPS+ and a 145 ERA+, it’s not exactly surprising.

Yet, as much as we’ve heard figures tossed around, questions remain as to not only what Ohtani is likely to earn, but how long would such a contract last, and of course who is going to offer it. Where the team’s hopeful of signing baseball’s best player is concerned, most generally agree that it’s going to be one of three: The Los Angeles Dodgers, San Francisco Giants, or New York Mets - you can read more about that here - but when it comes to the nature of the contract, we can only really go with what’s being said in the industry.

What’s been said about Shohei Ohtani’s potential contract?

As mentioned before, the general figure that’s been repeatedly mentioned is $500 million in a contract that would spread across 10 or more years. Now, while that’s not definitive it’s certainly in keeping with what most sources have stated. On the other hand, some have also projected a figure of $545 million over nine years. Last but not least, there has been a forecast of $550 with an opt-out clause arriving as early as the conclusion of his first season. With that, we should say that in all scenarios opt-out clauses were included.

What’s an ‘opt-out’ clause?

If you didn’t know, ‘opt-out’ clauses are the means by which teams can further entice players to join them, while also avoiding any conflict with the Competitive Balance Tax which essentially places a salary cap on all teams in the league. By allowing players the right to terminate their contracts should they so desire at the appointed time, teams can avoid having to pay players more upfront i.e., going over the salary cap. As you can imagine this is a common practice when it comes to top-tier talent, and will almost certainly be used in any offer made to Ohtani given that he’s quite literally the best player in MLB.

Can MLB salary history help as a guide?

While it doesn’t necessarily guarantee that Ohtani will get the projected figure that we’ve been seeing, it does stand to reason that a look at the biggest contracts in baseball today can give some insight as to what we can expect. Below we can see the five most lucrative contracts right now, along with their lengths:

Given who Ohtani is and what he brings - with all due respect to the stars mentioned above, one has to feel that a $500 million contract is definitely within the realm of possibility if not certainty. For the moment all we can do is watch and wait.